QYRQ QYZ: Music & Film from Central Asia

Sunday, March 4, 2018 @ 4:00 PM

Qyrq Qyz (Forty Girls) is a legendary, epic Central Asian tale in which a girl gathers a group of 40 young female warriors to vanquish invaders, securing her clans’ freedom. Uzbek filmmaker Saodat Ismailova’s adaptation transforms the epic into a multimedia work that places live performance by female reciters and instrumentalists against a backdrop of multiscreen video projection, With a musical score by the celebrated Tashkent-based composer Dmitri Yanov-Yanovsky, Qyrq Qyz is a true celebration of women’s musical traditions in the Muslim world.

5 Replies to “QYRQ QYZ: Music & Film from Central Asia”

Successful blending of traditional and contemporary stories and sensibilities. Powerful combination of means, with both recorded and live sound, filmed and live action. Very moving to experience those young women performing a version of their ancient tradition that celebrates women’s power now.

The juxtaposition of film and live music was beautifully done allowing the viewer entry into the myth. This masterful production transposed the audience in time and space- ancient yet contemporary. Mystery of rituals, shamanistic chants and awe inspiring images reminded one of the power each individual can invoke when we live in harmony with the elements of earth, fire, water and wind. bravo to the producers and the wonderful artists who inspired us last evening.

It is clear that the artists are skilled and the performance was well designed. I am thankful for the efforts that were made to bring this event to Amherst.

But, the overall experience made me leave early. English language captions, perhaps up high on the screen, might have helped. The long wailing songs may have had meaning for those who knew the language, but not for me.

And the sound system really should have been better run — One voice was painfully loud probably because her body mic was set up wrong. Did someone do a sound check?

And this was a stereo performance, brought to us in mono. You could not tell which person was singing — all of the body mics pumped sound to mono speakers up high. What a loss. There was no sense of dialog or musical interplay. Producers and directors really should be more careful about using body mics instead of stage mics. The loss of left to right sound separation really hurt this performance.

And there are ways to set an atmosphere to evening storytelling that do not include plunging the entire auditorium into near darkness. Many details were lost in the gloom.

It was deeply moving. To share the experience of those women singing, chanting and experiencing the legend each time they perform it was mesmerizing. What an emotional experience- I cried at the end- Having lived in a Muslim country for a short time, this was an amazing experience. I would have loved to meet them and talk to them about their experience in reliving this great story over and over, also wondered what it was like for them to travel to these modern countries? the people? the food? the language? I wish there had been an after screening talk and chance to meet them all. The director wasn’t very friendly when I tried to thank her, after the performance.
One complaint was the lettering was not high enough on the screen I was in the third row and could not read a lot of the words, so either move the girls to the side or move the titles up higher. I wished the clothing/costumes were more traditional the one pictured in the brochure was not worn during the performance. Thank you for a most wonderful, inspiring evening.